Violinist Rachel Barton Pine

'The more good music the better,' says violinist Rachel Barton Pine, who plays with New West Feb. 22-24

Andrew Eccles/Contributed photo In April, Rachel Barton Pine is releasing a CD of soothing music for parents and their newborns. “Violin Lullabies” will feature 25 “cradle” songs by Brahms, Gershwin, Schubert, Strauss, Ravel and others.

Andrew Eccles/Contributed photo Violinist Rachel Barton Pine lost her left leg in a 1995 commuter train incident, but she refuses to dwell on the incident. “In a way I feel like the circumstances of my family growing up were more defining for me than the medical challenges I had later on,” she says.

Rachel Barton Pine started a nonprofit foundation in 2001 that supports instrument loan programs, education and career grants for young musicians. “It’s been a great blessing to help the next generation of musician,” she says.

When she guests with the New West Symphony this weekend, Rachel Barton Pine will perform Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto. It’s a piece she first learned at age 13. “I never get tired of returning to it,” she says. Andrew Eccles/Contributed photo

Cedille Records Rachel Barton Pine's new album, "Violin Lullabies," with pianist Matthew Hagle, will be available for digital download on April 2, with the CD on sale April 30. The phots is of Pine's daughter, Sylvia, when she was less than 1 month old, held by Pine's husband, Greg.

Andrew Eccles/Contributed photo Rachel Barton Pine loves the classical repertoire, but rock music is a big part of her life, too. She plays electric violin in Earthen Grave, a thrash/doom metal band.